In present day aircraft, it is quite common for the flight controls to be arranged so that the pilot controls movement of the rudder by means of foot operated controls. The usual arrangement is to have left and right pedals, each mounted to a related downwardly extending pivot arm so that the pedals move in an arcuate path. The two pedals are generally interconnected in a manner that when one pedal is depressed, the other pedal moves toward the pilot. The pedals are commonly connected to a cable system which extends from the forward cockpit area to the tail section to connect to control devices for the actuators that actually move the rudder.
When the aircraft is taxiing on the ground, the rudder pedals are operably connected to a steerable ground wheel or wheels in a manner that pushing one or the other of the pedals forwardly (with the other pedal moving in the opposite direction) causes the ground wheel to turn. In addition, the pedals are mounted for rotation about transverse axes at the heel portions of the pedals. By rotating the toe portion of the pedals forwardly and downwardly about these heel axes of rotation, the brakes can be applied.
One of the shortcomings of such prior art foot pedal assemblies is that to enable the pedals to have adequate linear travel to enable the pilot to provide adequate control, the pivot arms and their associated components are necessarily positioned below the floor level of the cockpit. Not only does this occupy space in the aircraft which could be used advantageously for other functions, but it limits the extent to which the pilot location could be moved to a more forward location, this being more desirable since it would normally provide the pilot with greater visability.
Another problem area is the adjustment of the pedal location to accommodate pilots of different height. The pilot seat is usually made adjustable so that it could be raised or lowered, as well as moved more forwardly or rearwardly, and the pedals are also generally made adjustable so that the neutral position of the pedals could be moved more forwardly or rearwardly to a position on its arcuate path of travel. The relative positions of the window, the seat and the pedals are generally selected to accommodate the pilot of average height so that the pedals would be placed comfortably at a location moderately below and forward of the pilot's seat. Thus, the shorter pilot will generally adjust the seat to a higher position (to place the pilot's eyes at the proper location for a view through the window) and the neutral position of the pedals will be moved rearwardly toward the seat and/or the seat moved further forward. This places the shorter pilot in a more awkward position to maneuver the pedals. On the other hand, the rather tall pilot is also inconvenienced, in that the seat is lowered and possibly moved rearwardly. Also, the neutral position of the pedals may be moved further forward, so that the arcuate path of travel is slanted from the operating path which would be most comfortable to the pilot. Also, when the pedals are moved from the intermediate location to accommodate either the taller or shorter pilot, the slant of the pedals is moved from the optimum position so that the pilot has greater difficulty in rotating the pedals properly to apply the brakes.
With regard to the basic control system of the aircraft, over the years consideration has been given to eliminating (or at least limiting) the use of cable assemblies for control of aircraft components and substituting an electrically operated control system. In such a system, the pilot would operate the controls to generate electric signals which would be transmitted through wires to the appropriate components, with the signals then operating control devices to cause the appropriate movement of the corresponding actuator or other device. This in turn leads to consideration for possibly other arrangements of the pilot controls themselves to function more effectively with such modified control systems, with respect to such things modularizing the controls to make maintenance easier and less expensive.
A search of the patent literature disclosed a number of patents which are discussed briefly below. While some of these are considered to be not particularly relevant to the present invention, all are mentioned to ensure the applicants are properly fulfilling their duty of disclosing all prior art which might be of any relevance.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,222,839, Wright, discloses a brake mechanism where there is one pedal, and a number of brake elements are actuated substantially simultaneously from the one pedal.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,608,611, Milburn, shows a brake pedal, the angular position of which can be adjusted.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,844,607, Sikorsky, shows a control pedal system for an aircraft where there are two sets of pedals. Each pedal has a horizontal platform that is mounted for linear motion, and a slanted upright foot engaging portion mounted to downwardly extending pivot arms. The two sets of pedals are selectively interconnected to operate control cables.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,074,730, Kerr, Jr., shows a pedal control mechanism where the pedals are mounted to pivot arms; the subject matter of the patent relates primarily to the hydraulic system associated with the pedals.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,478,546, Pickens et al., discloses pivotally mounted pedals that have an adjusting mechanism for the location of the pedals.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,697,566, Glass, shows a control system for an aircraft which can be converted from a three-control system to a two-control system, and the controls utilize pedals mounted to pivot arms.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,757,630, Ottinger, discloses a foot steering apparatus for a boat. The pedals are mounted to slideways which in turn connect to cables that control the position of an outboard motor.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,760,739, Reichert, relates to a control apparatus for an airplane where the control elements are power operated and which serve to give the pilot the "feel" of the control element such as would occur in the case of control elements that are manually powered.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,129,605, Bonnell, Jr. et al, shows a control system where the pedals are mounted on pivot arms, and the position of these pedals can be adjusted.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,217,240, Grant et al, shows a control system where there is an electrical output that varies in accordance with the force applied.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,377,881, Lucas, discloses a particular linkage for control pedals that are mounted to pivot arms.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,576,302, Palfreyman, shows a solid state rudder pedal positioned sensor to provide an electrical output signal corresponding to the adjusted position of the rudder pedal, with the rudder pedal being pivotally mounted.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,785,596, Chinchester-Miles, shows a control system utilizing rudder pedals which turn about a vertical axis for yaw control.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,004,537, Nilsson, shows a steering mechanism where the rudder is controlled by a manually operated steering wheel.
In view of the foregoing, it is an object of the present invention to provide a pilot station, and more particularly a pedal assembly for such pilot station, which provides greater adaptability for ease of operation by both taller and shorter pilots, which is relatively compact, and which is particularly adapted to operate in a control system where control signals are generated at locations proximate to the controls.